September, 2009

An interesting set of survey results entitled "Key Findings from the 2008 Health Tracking Study Physician Survey" by the Center for Studying Health System Change (HSC). 

Lots of interesting tidbits in here as they break down physician attitudes towards compensation, career satisfaction, etc., by race, compensation level, working hours, and speciality. 

I find it interesting to see by how much the specialties differ on certain issues.  Sure, pediatricians are much more like to be "very satisfied" with their careers (over half of you).  I also find it interesting that you are twice as likely to accept Medicaid patients (three times more likely than the surgeons - shocker!), though less likely to provide "free" care as a result.

Table 5 - Physicians With No Managed Care Contracts - is also quite fascinating...look at how far pediatrics lags in this regard.  Other specialties are 2-3x more likely to not take insurance than pediatricians.

Back in April, I wrote a piece about the opportunity many practices are missing by not embracing the swine flu issue.  I know it's easy for me to say, of course, but I think pediatric practices should be racing to be the source for providing the swine flu vaccines.  Give this function away and you've whittled away another task from your repetoire that someone else can do.

Anyway, I posted a response to a recent PedTalk H1N1 discussion (you can  read my response here) and I am grateful to Lynn Cramer for following it up with some real data. To quote her:

Just in my 1 and 1/2 hours of triage this morninig

Four swine flu questions resulted in

TWO ASTHMA CONTROL visits w/PFT/seasonal flu vaccines MDI teaching
ONE well visit
and FIVE seasonal flu shots (including 2 parents who pay TOS)

By bringing in patients early (300 FLUMIST and 500 injectable flu vaccines)
given since Aug 5 for payments of > $19,500.00 to date and $4300 in
payments for vaccine product alone! This will give a big boost to the
Sept/Oct payment dip usually related to decrease in well and preventative
visits in Sept

with the swine flu we are first to sign up admin fees are $5.00 to $23.00
each depending on 1st or second < or > 8y

Who needs marketing this winter? patients...are knocking down the door !

Exactly. Just as the complaints roll in about the practices slowing down with the economy, we get the biggest boost I've seen in 20 years and most people want to put their heads in the sand! But not my readers :-)

PCC has opened our 2010 ICD-9 prep course for pediatrics to the public.

Prepare Your Practice for 2010 ICD-9 Changes 

Prepare your practice for the 2010 ICD-9 changes by attending this special pediatric coding weblab on Thursday, September 24 from 3:00 to 4:00 p.m. ET. Jan Blanchard, PCC's Certified Professional Coder (CPC), will highlight and discuss the changes to ICD-9, including new, revised, and retired diagnosis codes that will take effect on October 1, 2009. Free for PCC clients. Sign up for this weblab now.

Yet another unscripted example of a client successfully fighting the managed care companies for a better fee schedule.  Verbatim:

I just followed your steps--letter to our patients with a
drop-dead date about 5-6 months ahead, encouraged them to call their
benefits people (this plan covers a lot of small unions; it's really
just a claims priocessor, so getting the union members to protest was
the key), and waited for the call from [MCO] asking what would they
have to do to keep us. I made a proposal, asking for about 130%
Medicare. They initially came back that they couldn't go that high, but
then proposed 100% of the N. NJ Medicare rates, which, as I said, are
at least 120% of ours. They could have countered with 100% of OUR
Medicare schedule, but, for some reason, they used the NJ one--to our
major advantage.

 

...we are having our front desk person call [the patients] to inform them that we are staying in the plan--and getting them
to schedule their next well visit at the same time.

I love it, especially that last line.  Sure enough, the doc here ran a quick report and confirmed that it's a 75 percent fee increase and is getting the kids in ASAP.  

Big, conglomorate practice?  No.

Professional negotiator? No.

Willingness to say, "No!" to an MCO? Yes.  That's what it takes.

Good work.